


Remember Me, You Clever Girl.

by Niceto_Thetya



Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, F/F, Fluff, Mild Smut, Misunderstandings, i really don't know how to tag this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-21
Updated: 2021-02-22
Packaged: 2021-03-18 14:47:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,368
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29611023
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Niceto_Thetya/pseuds/Niceto_Thetya
Summary: An extended oneshot from my Femslash February series, following the prompt 'Superhero AU'.Dr Jane Smith is desperate to find out the identity of The Impossible Girl and she's willing to bug every superpowered friend she has to do so- but when has anything ever been that simple?Or Clara's superpower means Jane can never remember her when she's out of sight.If you want a version with no smut, check out chapter 19 of my FemSlash February Compilation 'So Many Stars Tonight'.
Relationships: Eleventh Doctor/River Song (Mentioned), Tenth Doctor/Rose Tyler (mentioned), Thirteenth Doctor/Clara Oswin Oswald, Twelfth Doctor/Missy (mentioned)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 11





	1. Remember Me, You Clever Girl

**Author's Note:**

> Honestly I'm still not crazy sure about this one but I'm already late on it so I'm posting it.

Dr Jane Smith was a lot of things. Subtle was not one of them.

If she was subtle, she wouldn’t have been sitting on the Magician’s desk, whining at him about the latest mystery she was attempting to uncover while he did his best to keep the conversation on track. Honestly, she should have been flattered that she hadn’t been kicked out, yet; Basil wasn’t a patient man- at least not with most people- but Jane knew she could get away with it.

“I thought you’d be just as annoyed about this as me. You know she’s stopped the Witch twice already?”

The Magician leant a little closer to her. “And you’re expecting me to complain that I’ve not got her bothering me?”

Jane shrugged. “I mean you never complain when she _is_ bothering you. She’s basically pulling your pigtails trying to get your attention at this point. You’ve even got the whole matching names thing going on.”

“I’m quite enjoying the place not smelling of corpse.”

“You’re the one who’s sleeping with a necromancer.”

“I’m definitely not!” Basil gave her a sharp look, and she decided not to push it, going back to her original rant.

“I need to know who she is!”

“Why? She certainly seems to be on our side so what does it matter?”

Jane sat back with a slight huff. “She must be incredibly powerful to do what she does without being seen. You don’t think we should be keeping tabs on that?” 

Basil sighed at her. “Who else have you asked?”

“Pandora. She couldn’ see _anything_ about her, Basil. She called her The Impossible Girl.”

For the first time she actually seemed to have peaked his interest. Pandora could usually see everyone- every possibility. For her to be blind to someone was a rarity.

“Do you have any leads?” He asked, somewhat begrudgingly.

“I have an address. I don’t know if she lives there or if it’s just a front or what, but-“

“Don’t just barge in there alone.”

Jane tried to look offended, but- well, that had been her plan. “As if I’m just going to go charging into some unknown woman’s building on my own.”

“Who’re you taking with you?”

She tried not to look too frustrated at his over-protective streak. Not for the first time, Jane wondered if he’d had a family, before all of this. She could definitely see him as a dad, somewhere long ago and far away.

“I have people watching my back. Don’t worry so much.” Jane hopped down off of the desk, shooting the Magician what she hoped was a reassuring smile. “Say hi to Madman and Hero for me- haven’t seen them in a while.

Basil gave her a look. “You should visit and tell them yourself sometime. John worries about you- it’s been driving me up the wall.”

Trying to ignore the sick, guilty feeling that left in the pit of her stomach, Jane slipped out of his office, not sure what else to say.

Despite her assurances that she’d be bringing the Protector along, Jane had headed to the address listed alone. She had a few tricks up her sleeve if it came to that, but so far, she hadn’t seen a thing. The apartment was neat and clean- a little too orderly for her tastes, but clearly well-maintained, and lived in. She’d padded around for a few minutes, before reaching the kitchen.

Standing there, leaning against the counter and watching Jane as though she got her house broken into on a daily basis, was one of the prettiest girls she’d ever seen. The petite brunette was clad in a very neat red dress with a Peter Pan collar and, holding a penguin books mug in both hands. She hardly looked threatening.

They stated at each other for almost a minute, before the woman held out the mug in her hand to Jane in a sort of joking half-toast, giving her an amused kind of smile.

“The Superstition, I presume? I’ve heard you’ve been asking questions about me.”

“You’re the Impossible Girl?” Jane tried not to sound surprised. She knew you could hardly judge someone’s powers just from the look of them, but most non-humans had this kind of air around them of _something_ a little off. This woman, at least by Jane’s estimation, seemed as human as they came.

“You could just call me Clara- as that’s my name?”

“Jane.” The blonde offered a smile, a little baffled by the whole situation, really. This was- not at all what she’d expected.

“Nice to meet you, Jane Smith- can I get you a cuppa? It’ll make for a much nicer chat.”

It wouldn’t be until much later that Jane realised she hadn’t given her full name.

Two days later, Jane was sitting in a slightly dodgy café, leaning over the table a little more than strictly necessary towards Songbird. She might avoid using her powers more than most, but she was certainly a force to be reckoned with- and she was the kind of woman who made it her business to know everyone.

“What do you know about the Impossible Girl?”

River’s face broke into a smirk at that one- it was clearly a question she’d been expecting. “Yes James warned me you were on that one.” She hummed, glancing around to make sure there were no human’s listening in. “I thought you’d probably come to me soon when you heard about what she did to the Spymaster.”

Jane’s head snapped up at that one. “What did she do to him?”

“He had some big plan, apparently. I don’t know the details- probably something nonsensical and overly complicated knowing him, but police found him cuffed to a pipe in his own warehouse two days ago. He’s out again, obviously, but it’s still impressive- especially since he’s apparently got no leads on her.”

“She took the Spymaster down without being seen?” Even she hadn’t managed that,

“Well it certainly looks that way. I hear you had an address for her?”

“It was a dud the first time.”

River shrugged, leaning back in her seat and crossing one leg over the other, clearly amused by this whole situation. “Maybe you should try again?”

“Try again?”

“Well, whoever she is she’s insanely powerful- and that kind of power can be dangerous. She seems to be on our side, but that kind of power can be dangerous.”

From what Jane knew of the Songbird’s story, she suspected she was speaking from experience. “You don’t have anymore leads?” she asked hopefully.

River shook her head.

“Not really. I heard a rumour it could be a codename for a team of women, but I kind of doubt that’s true. Strength in numbers isn’t a thing many people want to hide.”

“Okay, so, go back to the original address, and keep an eye out for multiples?

“Mhm.” River hummed, watching Jane over the top of her cup. “Just don’t get yourself hurt in there- those brothers of yours will be awfully cross with me if they know I told you to keep investigating her.

“They’re not my _brothers_.” 

“They’re as good as, and they worry about you.” River cut her off before she could get into a rant. Jane’s eyes fall to her teacup, a little sheepish, but she didn’t respond.

As Jane hoisted herself up onto the balcony of the apartment she’d found, she couldn’t help but wish she’d used another entrance, especially when she tumbled over the railing, only to land right at Clara’s feet. The brunette raised an eyebrow at her, though she looked more amused than annoyed.

“Superstition. Always a pleasure. You know, you can always just use the front door.”

“Clara!” Jane’s voice was bright, and a little surprised, as though she hadn’t expected to run into her at all. She glanced over the edge of the balcony at her rope, frowning just a little. “Sorry I don’t know why-“

Clara laughed lightly. “Don’t worry about it.” She bent down to help Jane, but the blonde’s eyes were almost immediately drawn to the bandage wrapped around her forearm.

“What happened?” She asked, suddenly sounding concerned.

“One of the Spymaster’s traps.” Clara shrugged, flexing her fingers. “Nightingale took a look at it for me, it’s nothing too serious.”

“But people have been saying you got in and out of that job clean?”

“One minor injury isn’t messy.”

“But it you’re getting hurt-“ Jane tried, but Clara shushed her. She managed to keep quiet for all of ten seconds before speaking again. “What if he comes after you?”

Clara smirked slightly. “I’d like to see him try.”

“Are you still hooked on this whole ‘Impossible Girl’ thing?” John had apparently gotten bored of waiting for a visit from her, and had come himself. Jane was already beginning to get frustrated. It wasn’t that she didn’t like seeing him- but there was something about his habit of swanning around her flat peering around which set her on edge.

“I need to know who she is!” Jane moved over to pick up the stack of notes he was looking at, dropping them into an already messy paper tray in the corner of her desk. “She’s powerful, and I think she could be important.”

“I’m surprised you haven’t got one of those little-“ He mimed pushing a pin into the wall, “The conspiracy cork-boards with the red string.”Jane felt her face heat up slightly, and his suddenly broke into a grin. “Oh now this I’ve got to see.”

Jane crossed her arms over her chest. “I don’t wanna talk about it.”

John laughed, his tone teasing. “If I didn’t know any better I’d think you had a crush, Jane-y. A crush on a woman nobody can see- now that really would be something.”

“I don’t _fancy_ her. I just want to know what her whole deal is.”

“And we don’t want you to get hurt. Getting emotional over stuff like this can be dangerous. I’m worried about you- James and Basil, are too.”

Jane raised an eyebrow. “You’re suddenly worried about me fallin’ for a mystery girl?” She asked dryly. “You three _really_ can’t talk.”

“What’s that supposed to-“ He began, but Jane held up a hand to stop him.

“Bad Wolf, Songbird, and the Witch. Getting attached to mysterious women is sort of our thing.”

That certainly seemed to shut him up teasing her.

Clara always seemed to be expecting her when she visited. It was odd, really, Jane could rarely remember why she’d decided to stop by, but after that first time, there were always two cups of tea sitting on the countertop, and sometimes she’d spread out maps and plans, wanting Jane’s opinion. Today, though, there’d been a film set up and a bowl of popcorn on the coffee table, and Clara had already been dressed in soft flannel pyjamas, her hair piled up on top of her head. She looked pretty like that- softer, more domestic. She got a feeling this was not a side of the Impossible Girl that many people got to see, and was rather touched that she’d been allowed a glimpse.

“I’m not interrupting owt am I?” She’d asked after stumbling in.

Clara had just rolled her eyes fondly, gesturing to the blanket-covered couch.

“You said you liked bad scifi movies- I lined a few of the worst up.”

She really hadn’t been lying about that- not that Jane was complaining. Sitting curled up with Clara under a blanket giggling at the cheesy effects was nice in a way she hadn’t particularly expected, especially when the night set on and Clara started to get sleepy, her head resting against Jane’s shoulder.

“So this one has amnesia too?” She asked, her voice slightly muffled by the blanket wrapped around their shoulders.

“Mhm. I think it’s something to do with him coming back to life.”

Clara offered the screen an inscrutable look, and then shook her head.

“I don’t know why they always forget.”

“I know you’re here to ask me about the Impossible Girl.”

The Storyteller was never one to stand on ceremony, or be held back by social customs like greetings. Jane found she rather liked that about her.

“And I’m really hoping you have more to tell me than everyone else, because nobody seems to know who she is.”

“Not much that I can share.” She watched Jane with an expression somewhere between interest and distrust. “You’ve never met her?”

“Don’t even know what she looks like.” Jane shrugged. The Storyteller raised an eyebrow, but didn’t push her on the issue.

“You have her address, right?”

“How did you know-“ Jane began, but the dark haired woman raised a hand to stop her talking.

“It’s an awfully big lead not to have followed up on.”

Jane opened her mouth to argue the point, but couldn’t. She had no excuse- why _hadn’t_ she visited yet? The Storyteller gave her a knowing look.

“You should take that, too,” She nodded, at a little black object sitting on the table by her chair. Jane picked it up, turning it over in her hands.

“Been reading about pirates a lot, lately?” She asked, bringing the eyepatch up to try it on. She froze when it was just a few inches from her face, taking a breath. She could feel a faint buzzing coming from within the thing- something dangerous and unstable which sent a faint, electric prickle over her skin- like the static that hung in the air before a thunderstorm.

For the first time the Storyteller had broken her well-practiced air of aloofness, now on her feet in front of Jane and reaching a hand out towards her, as though she’d been ready to physically stop her if she hadn’t realised in time. “It’s dangerous, but it’ll be useful. You’ll know what it’s for when you get there.”

Jane looked at her for a long moment, before nodding. “Thank you.”

“I’m not doing it for you.”

It was unusual, really, how quickly she had caught herself trusting Clara. They couldn’t have met more than two or three times before Jane was falling into bed with her. More unusual, was how well Clara had seemed to know her when they did. She found herself trying to keep up as this Impossible Girl’s tongue found that spot just above her pulse point that made her heart speed up and sent a little keening sound tumbling from her lips.

She’d gotten Jane’s suspenders undone with a well-practiced ease, and while the blonde wasn’t exactly inexperienced, she certainly felt like a bumbling mess in comparison.

She rather quickly learned to let Clara take the lead.

Jane’s body had always been a bit of a mystery to her. Really, it was a symptom of losing so much of her past, but it seemed as though Clara could read her like a book, straddling her hips and kissing her breathless, her own skirt hiked up around her waist. Her panties were red lace, and Jane found herself appreciating just how _good_ her Impossible Girl looked in red.

Clara shifted until she was kneeling between her legs, skirting around the odd scar on Jane’s inner thigh as though she knew how painful it was to the touch.

“How did you-“ She asked, still breathing heavily from the kiss.

“Shh.” Clara brought a finger to her lips, shaking her head. “No questions. Not now.”

In any other circumstances, Jane might have complained, but then Clara’s hand was pressing against her through her underwear and heat was curling in the pit of her stomach and suddenly the fact that this woman was utterly impossible didn’t seem to matter any more.

“Who’s Clara?”

“I don’t know a Clara.”

“I mean, you clearly do, though.”

Jane glanced up from her desk, looking at the old envelope Ryan was holding. She frowned slightly, gesturing for him to pass it over. Sure enough, she’d written herself a note in the corner- ‘Dinner with Clara, 7pm, don’t forget’ followed by an address. She turned the envelope over, but there was nothing else of note- it was just an old bit of scrap paper, and the handwriting was clearly hers- she was honestly surprised that Ryan could read it. Even if she didn’t know what she’d been a Doctor of, she still very much had a Doctor’s hand.

“I know that place.” Yaz glanced over, looking a little concerned. “It’s posh.”

Jane shrugged. “Well- I should probably get ready, then.”

“You’re not _actually_ gonna go, right?” Yaz looked concerned, “You get a weird note saying you’ve got a date with a woman you’ve never met and you’re just going to turn up?”

“Well it’s my handwriting.” Jane wasn’t sure why, but she had a good feeling about this. “What’s the worst that could happen?”

Yaz had been right about the restaurant being fancy. Jane was wearing her best suit, and she’d bought flowers (she wasn’t entirely sure what had possessed her to do so- it just felt right), and now she was just sitting there at the table she’d apparently reserved, waiting for her mystery date to turn up.

When Clara walked into the room, she took Jane’s breath away. She was dressed in scarlet, and she looked utterly stunning, striding over to the table and giving her an apologetic smile, “Sorry I’m late.”

Jane wanted to say that she’d have happily waited a lot longer for this, but that felt a little too cheesy for a kind-of first date, so she just smiled. “I don’t mind. I’m glad you’re here.”

“As if I’d miss our anniversary.” Clara said, though she seemed to regret it a moment later.

“Anniversary?”

“It’s a long story.”

“I didn’t remember why I was coming here today…” Jane said, her words coming a little slow as she tried to put the pieces together. Her own mind seemed to be actively fighting connecting the dots. “I didn’t remember I was meeting you. Why do I never remember you?”

“How do you think I get in and out of so many messes without being seen? I’m impossible. People can’t remember me when they’re away from me- makes life a lot safer, but-“ She gestured vaguely at the table. “It’s not so good for my love life.”

“So- how long?”

“Three months.”

Jane’s shoulders slumped slightly. It explained a lot but- well. It also _was_ a lot.

“I’m sorry-“ She immediately tried, but Clara shook her head quickly.

“No, no- I’ve got something for this.” pulling her bag into her lap and starting to dig through. for something- eventually finding a little jewellery box. When she opened it, and passed it across, Jane could see a single, odd-looking silver earing with a bulky, star-patterned cuff clinging to it by a stiff chain.

“Well that makes the flowers seem like a bit of a let down...” She glanced up at Clara, who was grinning now, “What?”

“I don’t think it really counts as a present, since you made it. Side effects of being around me too long you start to lose what you were doing even when it’s not directly related.”

“I made this?” She paused, and sure enough she could feel that faint electric humming coming from it. “What does it do?”

“Well, the Storyteller got you the parts and then you got it working. It’s external storage.”

“External storage for what?”

“Your brain.”

It was hard not to raise an eyebrow at that one. Jane found herself digging the little bits of silver out of the box. She could certainly see where things connected, and feel the wires that ran between the two pieces, but it would still be impressive if it worked.

“And it’ll store-“

“Me. Everything we do together. You’ll remember me.”

Jane’s breath caught in her throat, and she fumbled with the little clasps, trying to get the thing attached. In the end Clara leant over to help her, and between the two of them they managed to get it in place. Somehow, nothing felt different- not that she knew what it should feel like.

“How do we know if it’s worked?”

Clara took a breath, her fingers still lingering at Jane’s jaw. “I guess we just have to wait and see.”

The blonde took her hand, pressing a kiss to the back. “Thank you.

“Don’t thank me, you clever girl. Remember me.”


	2. Bonus Notes on the AU

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just looking at the different minor characters and their powers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was going to put this in the end notes, but then I realised it was almost 1000 words and decided to add it as a bonus chapter instead incase people were interested. I only included the characters I mentioned, but I genuinely have over 4000 words of notes written up for this AU so let me know if you're interested in it and I'll write more about it.

The Superstition – Dr Jane Smith/Thirteen; Heightened intelligence and physical resilience. Innate affinity with technology. She can shape metal and fix circuits in a way which really shouldn’t be possible with her bare hands. She got her name because one of her first memories is of cutting a medical bracelet with a number 13 off.

The Magician – Dr Basil Smith/Twelve; Heightened intelligence and physical resilience. Has control over soundwaves. They can be incredibly destructive, but he tries his best to manipulate them in a pacifist way- using them for tricks to distract people or to cause damage to weapons in an area. Some of his more minor tricks look like magic, hence the alias. He wants to help people, but doesn’t necessarily want to be a superhero.

The Madman – Dr James Smith/Eleven; Heightened intelligence and physical resilience. Incredibly hypnotic speech patterns. His words are hard to resist and often prove useful for misdirection. Originally tried to use the alias Troy Handsome, but it didn’t stick for some reason. He isn’t entirely sure where Madman came from, but he’s fairly sure that the Magician had something to do with it.

The Hero – Dr John Smith/Ten; Heightened intelligence and physical resilience. Has the ability to reflect damage away from himself and onto the perpetrators, effectively having them cause their own destruction. He’s the most into the whole ‘Superhero’ thing, at least outwardly, to the point his own powers sometimes become dangerous to him- he has a tendency to allow himself to take too much damage in an attempt to reflect it back, and has in the past had to be pulled out of situation before it kills him. Going on missions alone is always dangerous for him.

The Witch – Melissa “Missy” Saxon/Missy; Heightened intelligence and physical resilience. Can take control of the recently deceased. They don’t maintain their consciousness, and they decay incredibly quickly once she takes control, but she can make use of their powers. Definitely falls into the Supervillain architype, but can be persuaded to work with the hero’s when it suits her- especially if it’s something to do with uncovering her past. She 100% chose her alias to match the Magician’s.

The Spymaster – Oscar Saxon/Dhawan!Master; Heightened intelligence and physical resilience. He had strong telepathic abilities, and a tendency towards mental manipulation- he loves getting into people’s heads- specifically he can implant a suggestion in his enemies minds which is then very hard to ignore. It’s not quite mindreading, but he can extract information through it if he really has to. It’s never worked right on Jane and that infuriates him.

Pandora – Amy Pond; The ability to see through time, and predict the future. Her predictions are often hard to read, since she sees all possible futures, rather than simply the most likely. She was a warrior of an ancient civilisation, but her people considered her to be too dangerous and tried to kill her. She was frozen in time to save her, and has only recently been freed.

The Impossible Girl – Clara Oswald; Has powers over perception and memory. She’s capable of operating unperceived in even very crowded areas, and it’s almost impossible to remember any details about her when you’re not with her. The closest connection she really has due to this is with the Storyteller, since her power means she constantly has to write things down and can’t trust her memory anyway, so she’s able to keep reminding herself of Clara’s existence.

The Protector – Yasmin Khan; She’s still getting used to her powers, but she has the ability to create a forcefield/shield to protect her allies. It’s incredibly draining physically, and if the shield takes too much damage it can seriously hurt her. Thirteen often has to remind her when keeping the shield up isn’t worth it anymore.

Songbird – River Song; She has the ability to travel through time, though it’s a messy process. As a result of frivolous use in the past, there are several different versions of her around at any one time, and her timeline is constantly one wrong move away from unravelling entirely. She’s capable of creating bubbles of frozen time, but the only time she ever did so was as a very young girl to save her parents.

The Nightingale – Martha Jones; Has the ability to speed up the body’s natural healing processes- it’s not instantaneous but it can make an injury that would take weeks to heal close up in a few days.

The Storyteller – Ashildr; She has the ability to pull real items/characters/creatures from fiction, given enough time. In a rush, she can create illusions which can appear to be real if they’re not physically interacted with. The connection works both way, and parts of her can slip back into the book, so she has to write everything down so she won’t lose parts of her actual life after using her powers.

The Bad Wolf – Rose Tyler; A cosmic force of almost infinite power, only able to operate through a human host. It passed onto Rose when she was a little girl, but was only awoken recently. Nobody’s entirely sure what it would be capable of if it was untethered, but for now Rose can only access a fraction of its power without burning herself up.

Ryan; Ryan Sinclair hasn’t got an alias yet- mostly because he thinks far too hard about it and cycles through a new one each week. He never thought he inherited his grandmother’s powers until he was older, and he’s still very much getting used to them. He’s able to project a part of his consciousness into other areas. This double of him can’t interact with anything physically, but he can see and hear what it does, and use it to convey messages.


End file.
